Neighbour calls at 8:30 am on Saturday to tell me she is stressed?

But what could the OP even have done to help, though? Google something the neighbour could just have Googled herself? Let her wait in the flat while the locksmith came? There was no need - the neighbour wasn't even locked out anymore! She just rang to whine about having lost her keys! Why does that require "compassion"?

She can't be that young if she has 18 year old grandchildren. Also, are you sure she's a teacher?

This. I volunteered to help collect things/do shopping for my community over Covid. The first event was being asked to get some milk - which I wasn’t paid for. Fair enough, small change. Second event was lady asking me to collect her prescription. She chatted a long time on the phone and it transpired her adult daughter lived in the next street and was part of her bubble. But no, she couldn’t ask her daughter to collect because “I don’t want to bother her”. So then I just helped the elderly people on our street via our street whatsapp group.

Have you blocked her number yet, OP? If she comes to your door, verbally block her too: “No, sorry”, “No, I have a very busy life. Try your family or your friend and husband”. and repeat.

This is absolutely ridiculous. This woman sounds deranged. What on earth did you say to her when she asked for thousands of pounds?

OP has said that her neighbour is 45 so it's very unlikely to be dementia.

Next time tell her that you are still sleeping and to contact you after 9:30 am.

You must come accross as a kind
person.

Really? On a day most people will want a lie-in?

I agree completely, same here , up at fuck off o clock week day mornings, 8.30 is too early to be ringing anyone unless an emergency.
If OPS neighbour was locked out , fair enough then being rang to be left in , neighbour here was sat in her apartment with her spare set of keys , & rang OP to let her know she lost her original set , like come on in all fairness 🙄.

Why has she got your phone number?

You can put your phone on do not disturb and select certain contacts they will get through. Then she can ring all she wants.

I would have hung up the phone

Block her number and shut her down next time she asks for a favour. Have an excuse at the ready if you don’t feel comfortable just saying no. Some people are just takers and they prey on others.

Well she has obviously (and mistakenly!) taken you as someone she can go to for help, support and perhaps some company. If you don't want to be in that role, kindly but firmly push back.
I don't understand why you're in a lather over it, many of us have neighbours that are needy. I have been scrubbing diarrhoea off my neighbours carpet at 3am before, when she phoned me saying she was dying.

I know people like your neighbour. They use your time because they think other people's time (and their time) is more valuable than theirs. Examples include:

Getting me to phone 111 for them because they didn't want to 'sit on the phone all day pressing buttons and answering stupid questions'. But they'd phoned me late at night because they were unwell and I was over the driving limit (not drunk but not legally able to drive) at 11pm on a Friday night. They didn't ask their friend in the house opposite they asked me. My DH had to phone 111 on his phone whilst I was on the phone to the CF and relaying messages. Eventually 111 said just give us their number and we'll call them back directly.

Giving me their Census form and telling me to fill it in for them because they didn't have the time to 'sit around ticking silly boxes'. But I didn't know them well enough to answer the questions for them and I am not a market research interviewer who wants to interview them taking more time than if they'd ticked the boxes themselves but also wasting my time.

Telling me to phone their energy supplier because they'd got a massive bill and they didn't want to pay it. I did say they need to call first to give me permission but see example one. They called back and said they didn't want to 'sit on the phone all day pressing buttons and answering stupid questions'. Turns out the bill was correct because they had storage heaters and instead of turning them down or off when it got too hot, they just opened all the windows!

All of this was taking place during Covid lockdowns whilst I was trying to hold down a full time job AND home school 2 children, one in Reception so very time intensive, AND meet work deadlines. So the person really didn't have anywhere else to be or things to do because they were retired during lockdown!

They thought their time was more important and they didn't want to bother their family or friends. Making it clear they saw me as 'not a friend'!

CF is clear to me from the last part of your post about 'oh I don’t want to bother people, they have their own lives and problems” .'

Clearly she doesn't see you as a person with your own life.

You are misunderstanding what sense of community is. It is not bothering people with menial or non urgent matters because you think their time is less important than that of others.

You don’t need to worry about my sense of community or my neighbours - I have helped them in the middle of the night when they have been very ill, called ambulances and waited with them, watered their plants when away, taken parcels and baby sat in emergencies. All done very willingly.
Some will do the same for me if I ever need it and others are too infirm or elderly and I have no expectations of them reciprocating, obviously.

The community shouldn’t be there for you cos you don’t want to bother your family and closer friends in the same damn building. It shouldn’t be asked to loan you thousands of pounds to help other people.

Have you actually read all op’s posts. As someone who is up quite a bit earlier than you on a Saturday I would still find it unreasonable of someone I barely know to phone me at 8:30 asking me to do shit they can google or talk to their family or closer friends in the building about unless it was an emergency or they actually had dementia and couldn’t help it.

We have a street WhatsApp where people can ask favours etc. I don’t mind my neighbours texting or calling directly but they don’t take the piss or do it to avoid bothering their family and closer friends they socialise with who are living right there!

So just tell her very politely….

Please dear neighbour, I know you don’t want to bother your friends and neighbours with your lost key problem, but could you just remember that the weekend is my only chance to sleep in longer in the mornings -after a very busy week. I really do need that precious rest time to prepare me for the coming busy week again. Please only call me if there is a genuine emergency. Thanks so much for your understanding.

You can filter to the OP’s posts to avoid reading the whole thread.

My mother in law did something similar to this with her neighbour and it tur need out she was in early stages of dementia. Ordinarily she woukd never have asked anything from a neighbour.
This could be the reason .

Maybe this seems like a one way friendship..

Either way 8.30 ain't that early.
She could have easily of ignored the call.
Just glad I ain't your lots neighbors 🤣 not that I bother anyone.
But where is your sense of community? Compassion? Help a woman out. Too many mean people around.
G

100%

😂

and did you do it ?